IIPM ARTICLE BROADCAST

Project future leaders

2012-01-24T16:56:00.001+05:30

From “Indian National Congress” to “Indian New Congress”

I nodded my head in disapproval. These days, this has become quite often with me, more like a habit. Well, you’d be curious to know that which invites this nod of disapproval. It’s our country’s prevailing state of affairs that bothers me and burgeons deep concerns over its future. The world is anything but like of yore. It has become incredulously faster, is changing at a rapid rate and is progressing by leaps and bounds. We as a country are progressing too and the world is watching us grow closely & keenly. However, this wave of proliferating corruption in recent times is not only pulling us back from our path of progress but perpetrating an air of cynicism within the entire country.
Stories of scams & bribes have become a common phenomenon these days and have led to a building negativity amongst people. Corruption has spread its wings from small bribes to wealth of epic proportions. The people of India have lost all kinds of faith in any authoritative leadership. Consequently, Anna Hazare has become a local, national as well as an international hero on fighting corruption. And India’s oldest political party is in the eye of such a storm.
So, how does the Congress deal with this daunting problem? Applying our logic to what we tell brands would be one way to tackle this. Let’s go back in time and look at the case of Bajaj Auto. Bajaj had not ventured into bikes and had been a powerful scooter brand of the country. Bajaj decided to relaunch itself in a new avatar. This is what Bajaj did – (a) Changed the leadership, from Rahul Bajaj to Ravi Bajaj; (b) Changed its product offering, from scooters to motorcycles and; (c) Ensured that the new product offering is good and lives up to the expectations of the people.
So what can the Congress learn from this? The Congress needs to take the following steps: (i) Create a new offering to reappraise people. Instead of having old leaders and party members, the party should have MPs under the age of 40 years; (ii) Bring changes in the leadership. The party should induce new, fresh faces. If Rahul Gandhi is going to be their next Prime Ministerial candidate then he should be projected as a leader. A young brigade will perhaps allow people to forget the past misgivings of the party and give it another chance. If you don’t have something new to offer, people will not even give you a second look.
What Congress needs to do is to project future leaders and give people a new ray of hope for a promising tomorrow rather than mull over past catastrophes. The Congress needs to transform the party into a young party imploring the young and old of India to offer them an opportunity to clean up the mess and present a new transformed India.
With the country’s frustrations surging to an all time high and hope having turned its back creeping into some tiny corner of their hearts, the party needs to give the people hope. Hope fraught with the above strategy is the only way for its redemption and victory. However, the choice is for the party to make. Either one will be significant in deciding its future.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

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Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
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IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM RANKED NO.1 in MAIL TODAY B-SCHOOL RANKINGS
Planman Technologies

“New media is hot buy today”

2011-12-27T16:29:00.002+05:30

Media agencies have evolved from only buying print, tv, cinema, radio and outdoors to doing lots of digital buying, says Dnyanada Chaudhari.

As a media planner what is the environment like today and what are the fundamental challenges for professionals in this industry?

The fundamental challenges for us are that we need to keep up with the whole dynamism of the changing landscape. We have to be up and about regarding the changes taking place around us. Just look at the programmes on television today. Every month they are changing. As a media buyer we go where the consumers drive us and the consumers are buying into these changes. In such a dynamic media environment, we have got to keep up with the changing times and also figure out what’s going to last. So keeping your ears to the ground, assessing the changes and the kind of impact they will have on the industry, figuring out the long-term trends and dealing with lots of uncertainty around are the challenges we face today.

How would you describe the evolution of media buying agencies in the face of so much changes taking place in the sector?

I think the whole media consumption pattern is changing and a lot of new products have entered the market, which reflect the changes taking place around us. A lot of new advertisers with novel ideas and skills have come up, which is helping advertising to break new and fresh ground. Till sometime ago, the role of most media buying agencies was limited to only trading and buying media space for their clients. In recent times though, media agencies have taken on a more differentiated role. Media planning has become more focused and there is a much greater emphasis on getting returns for an investment made. So you will find there is a lot of conversation happening on ROI before a buying commitment is made. Similarly, a lot of analysis goes into assessing what the kind of impact would be for taking media space in the IPL or other large media properties. There are hard negotiations on buying terms and conditions besides getting clarity and understanding in terms of what works and what doesn’t.

What are the more visible trends that are impacting media consumption and how are media-buying agencies reacting to them?

Consumerism and technology are having a visible impact on the way we consume media. The impact of consumerism is not just on FMCG consumption but on a whole lot of other things, including media consumption. In the same way that rising consumerism has led to changing consumption patterns, technology is driving consumers to adapt in various ways leading to changes in the pattern of media consumption as well. For example, today mobile phones, which have deep penetration in the population, are used not just for chatting but for hearing songs, playing games, conducting financial transactions and so on. As such media buying agencies are now looking more to the potential of new media and not just at traditional media. The digital space has now become hot for both advertisers and sellers. So a lot of agencies have evolved from only buying print, radio, TV, cinema, outdoors to doing a lot of digital buying.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
IIPM Proves Its Mettle Once Again.....
IIPM Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri on Internet Hooliganism
Arindam Chaudhuri: We need Hazare's leadership
Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management
IIPM RANKED NO.1 in MAIL TODAY B-SCHOOL RANKINGS
Planman Technologies

Journey to the centre of the heart

2011-12-13T17:18:00.004+05:30

The upcoming festive season with some favourable developments is expected to provide the much needed boost to the Gems & Jewellery sector in India.

Circa February 2011: It seemed as if the branded jewellery buyers’ sponsored honeymoon was over. After doing away with 2% excise duty on branded jewellery in 2009-10, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, in the Budget 2011-12, had proposed to again levy a 1% excise duty on the same. Although 1% seems not too high for an excise duty rate, if one were to consider the same with the burgeoning gold and silver prices (while gold prices appreciated by around 30% in 2010, silver increased by a mind-boggling 80%), the multiplier effect was bound to burn a hole in the buyers’ wallets, and in turn the sellers’ pockets, with an imminent slowdown in sales. Even worse: the timing. While the sector was poised to grow at a CAGR of 40% to touch the Rs.100 billion mark by the end of 2011, the announcement was considered a major roadblock for the sector. Did all this hit the sector growth?

It’s been over six months since then and the sector seems to have weathered it all quite well. In fact, a 15.1% y-o-y growth in total exports of gems and jewellery from India during April-June 2011 shows that there’s not much bothering the sector, which accounts for 16.7% of India’s total merchandise exports (as on March 31, 2011). The January-June 2011 export figure for the segment was $25 billion; last year, during the same period, the figure was only $18 billion – in other words, the first six months of this year have seen a growth of 34.17% in exports. The Hong Kong jewellery fair, held every year from September 19 to September 25, is considered to be Asia’s largest gems and jewellery expositiong. 3,300 and above exhibitors from 46 countries, 50,000 plus buyers from 135 countries – and you know this is the grand slam of all events for this sector. This year, India has the largest contingent in this event compared to all participating countries. –

But still, for the players in this industry, the most critical market is the domestic one. While the global jewellery market is close to $145 billion in size, US, Hong Kong, China, and India, make up the top consumers of this industry. But recently, the domestic prices of diamonds have gone down by more than 10% – this is because during the fortnight before Dussehra, almost no purchases are made of gold and jewellery as this pre-Dussehra period is considered an inauspicious period to buy jewellery. Also, with gold prices at unimaginable highs (Rs. 27000 per 10 gms), and inflation playing truant with the savings of the Indian consumer, it is true that even the most auspicious of Indian consumers are thinking twice about investing in gold and jewellery – players like Gitanjali Gems have already commented that their sales could get hit by almost 10% this year.

“Our Stars Talk to us in 140 Characters”

2011-11-15T17:08:00.001+05:30

What are The Critical Media Vehicles that are making an Impact on The Manner in which Media is being Consumed in The Country today?

Everybody is a part of the media today. Shaping lives, influencing others, sharing one’s thought with the world – in person, over the phone and on the Internet... each one of us are actually a trend that is shaping media consumption in everybody’s life. Who isn’t a content writer or a journalist today? Anyone with a camera phone, with a twitter and an FB account activated can be one. A few million people everyday are reporting, shaping opinions, adding to the roar, scaring the living daylights out of the so-called establishments. Freedom of speech and connectivity together, which is a killer combo, is what makes the media today. And what we see on television, hear from the world over the radio and over our latest gadgets that grant us mobility are all a part of the media that we consume. Can we help it? We live in an ecosystem that is ever-a-changing.

So, if you ask me as to what were the most remarkable trends that have shaped media consumption in India over the last few years, in one word I would say ‘shortening’. Sounds weird, but in other words, it means everything is getting shorter by the hour. Everything is moving towards ‘size zero’. “m gng 2 da prty. r u?” – two decades back, this would sound nothing more than just a couple of randomly picked up alphabets put together in a hurry to make no sense. No more. It’s called the SMS language and is perhaps the new form in which media and information hits us. Our one day cricket has shed some 60 odd overs to become a 20-20. Our stars talk to us in 140 characters on the Twitter. The most watched youtube videos are less than three minute long. The long form editorials and reportage carry embedded in them little boxes with bullet points. We want it short. We make it short. And we deliver and consume it short as well!

There’s a reason for that. Along with China, we are the epicentres of global capitalistic greed, thanks to a billion plus consumers. And, increasing information artillery is making us both hard of hearing and uninterested. So, in the future, its not just simple, but ‘keep it short, stupid’ too. And the Internet, in my opinion, is the biggest bomb to fall on media consumers. It is the most interesting medium to watch out for, as the Internet surely comes across as a trend that is shaping media consumption in India. The mobile phone screen cannot be ignored as the most interesting interface when it comes to thinking about how Internet will influence the way media will operate tomorrow. And that will force people to think of the message in a whole new way. Therefore, mobile penetration would inevitably be the biggest opportunity to watch out for in the context of media consumption.

It’s a time when we are witnessing a ‘democratisation of access’, access to knowledge, entertainment and to a better life. When we talk about mobiles, it will be interesting to point out how I often hear that India missed the era of pagers and straight away got into mobiles. I say, it’s not just pagers we leapfrogged over. With mobile phones, a whole generation has started accessing the Internet on their handsets, without the help of computers too! And that is a massive step ahead. Changes like these leaves everyone guessing, which is a good change in my opinion. Let me move on to the next medium of consuming media – the newspaper. Newspapers, I believe, are not really growing in circulation all over the world. But news is thriving. I don’t expect anything different to happen here in India.

Meet The Biker and The Good Samaritan

2011-10-11T17:43:00.003+05:30

Be it Modelling, Acting, Biking–This Tinseltown hunk loves them all. John Abraham shares his Passion for Biking and his way of Serving The Society with 4PS B&M

Your passion for bikes & stunts is a much talked about topic. What’s that one particular stunt you would always remember?
My first wheelie will always remain to be the most memorable one. The best part was that it was a completely involuntary action. In spite of being initiated by a Gujju friend, the experience still remains fresh in my memory.

Which superbike do you love the most in terms of handling and performance?
I am totally taken away by the handling and performance of Yamaha VMAX. In fact, my first bike was also a Yamaha (RD350).

Your advice to the Gen-next stunt performers in India...
It is impossible and uncool to perform a wheelie on a scooter, so don’t think about it. Also, helmet is a must during performance.

You have been very supportive to NGOs. How do you find time for such causes amidst your busy schedule?
It has got more to do with your beliefs. I support these NGOs because I truly believe in their causes. You can always find time to do things that you believe in the most. In fact, I appreciate the incredible support media has lent to the causes that I have taken up time and again in the past.

THE TOP FIVE TV COMMERCIALS FOR THE FORTNIGHT - The Idiot Box!

2011-09-27T17:22:00.002+05:30

The following points are the deciding criteria for selecting and short-listing the winning TVCs: Product positioning clarity; clinching benefit to the brand; presence of a power idea; visibility of brand personality; expectancy of communication; single-minded focus; reward to prospects; visually arresting and painstaking craftsmanship. Here’s a peek into our TVC verdict for the fortnight ending March 10, 2011

Fevicol
Baseline: Fevicol, the ultimate adhesive
Agency: Ogilvy India

Description: The TVC opens on a hilly road where a newlywed couple is traveling in a mini truck. Every time the duo tries to get cozy, they are interrupted by a cyclist right behind their tail. After several attempts of ditching this unwanted intruder, the husband gets irritated and takes a steep road; but to his surprise discovers that the cyclist still hasn’t budged. He finally gives up; and the TVC ends with a rear view of the truck which is loaded with Fevicol containers.

4Ps Take: There are two things that Fevicol does best – manufacturing superior adhesives; and conceptualising commercials that have the potential of tickling the funny bones of even those who can’t appreciate humour. The current ad is no exception. Backed by a powerful idea and flawless execution, the creative succeeds in sticking adhesive where it matters the most, the prospect’s mind!

Vodafone

Baseline: Faster. Smarter. Better.
Agency: Ogilvy India

Description: A Zoozoo walks into a phone booth and comes out transformed into a Super Zoozoo. He takes off into the sky and proceeds to perform his superhero antics – rescuing a damsel Zoozoo from a bolt of lightning, saving another from a collapsing building while romancing her at the same time, and running faster than a speeding bullet to stop it before it hits someone. Finally, he spins the earth around its axis before flying off, as the screen reads: “Faster. Smarter. Better. Vodafone 3G is here.”

4Ps Take: If you loved Zoozoos (which in all probability you did), then you’ll love this one better. We’d say there can be no better way to introduce 3G services than a super Zoozoo which represents the metaphorical super benefits of a 3G connection. Fantastically supercilious! (Did we get it right?)

Reebok’s very own change agent

2011-08-02T16:38:00.003+05:30

From a sports company to fashion, Reebok has walked a long way and the company’s marketing director reveals to Angshuman Paul the secret strategies of this journey….

Sajid Shamim Director – Sales and Marketing, Reebok India

As we sauntered into the third floor of Signature Tower – the office of Sajid Shamim, Director, Sales & Marketing of Reebok India – we were delighted to see a group of buoyant, dynamic people in casual track-suits. A look at this energetic and vibrant team made us wonder how valuable they were for Sajid and Reebok. And the protagonist answered, “It’s the team that knows the pulse of brand Reebok. All our marketing strategies, which make Reebok the biggest apparel brand in India, are a cumulative effort of this team. I individually am a nobody.” A believer of autonomous corporate set-up and empowerment of his team, Sajid is a leader who provides directions, hence allowing ample scope to his team for creativity, innovation and experimentation.

Sajid’s professional life is a classic example of how destiny drives one’s life irrespective of various plans. While pursuing his MBA at XLRI Jamshedpur, Sajid was bent on joining the field of sales – and that too in the area of sports marketing. However, post MBA, he joined Coca Cola, something totally away from his earlier objectives. But it worked. He shares, “Working in Coca Cola was surely very interesting and it was the initial part of my career. Most importantly, it was during my two and half years with Coca Cola that I actually learned the practical aspect of marketing strategies.” Bucked up with valuable experience, he moved on to achieve his pre-decided goal and joined Reebok, which according to him was a very unique industry at that point of time, and required the type of challenges that he was looking for.

Reebok’s India venture, now a subsidiary of Adidas, happens to be the ‘single nation’ success for the global sportswear conglomerate. And that has happened as a result of smart game plans woven by two adroit leaders who, surprisingly, came from very different backgrounds. While Sajid came from an FMCG background, Subhinder Singh Prem, MD, Reebok India joined Reebok after a stint with pharmaceutical major Ranbaxy. However, lack of experience in the sports retailing space didn’t stop the duo from adding the requisite glitz to Reebok. Through innovations, careful go-to-market strategies and various strategic tie-ups (examples of which include the likes of Shiamak Bollywood Workout for Reebok, getting Manish Arora into their branding et al) within a time period of around a decade, these two have successfully helped Reebok occupy a unique space as a sporty yet fashionable brand in the minds of Indian consumers. Shares Sajid, “The challenge with us was to blend sports with fashion and we felt it was necessary to bring together sports and Bollywood. So, I came out with Bipasha-Dhoni campaign along with launch of radical women’s products.”

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM Best B School India
Management Guru Arindam Chaudhuri
Rajita Chaudhuri-The New Age Woman
IIPM's Management Consulting Arm-Planman Consulting
IIPM Proves Its Mettle Once Again.....
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Professor Arindam Chaudhuri - A Man For The Society....
IIPM: Indian Institute of Planning and Management

SWIMMING WITH THE SHARKS

2011-03-21T16:42:00.000+05:30

PRAKASH MORE, MD OF MAYUR PLYWOOD INDIA PVT LTD TALKS TO ASHUTOSH HARBOLA, EXPLAINING WHY IT’S IMPORTANT TO KEEP SWIMMING AGAINST THE HIGH TIDE OF TOUGH COMPETITION. USE MARKETING TACTICS, LEAD PEOPLE WELL, SATISFY YOUR CUSTOMERS AND WORK HARDER THAN EVER

Wishful thinking is what many would call it. Reality is what Prakash More, MD of Mayur Plywood India Pvt Ltd has proven it to be. His quest for entrepreneurial success began ten years back, when he ventured into the plywood market. Since then, competition has risen beyond imaginable levels and margins have become wafer-thin, but More proved his mettle with a track-burning growth. The mushrooming of uncountable small time and big players in the business didn’t stop him from expanding from one location to another across the country. Today, Mayur Ply has a presence across 14 cities, and has managed to comfortably carve a niche for itself. With three manufacturing plants (and the fourth one being inagurated soon) and with more than 300 people in the marketing department alone, competitors have come to realise and respect what More and Mayur are together capable of. Talk to him and you find he has yet another reason to smile. A no-brainer hint: your next home builder might just recommend using cement rolled out of one of More’s factories!

The plywood industry is saturated with a lot of small time, unorganised players. What makes your offerings unique?
We differentiate ourselves on the basis of superior quality. We cannot compete on the basis of price, as the many unorganised players in the industry conduct business at very low price points (therefore offering inferior quality products). Our motto is to provide the consumer the best quality products at fair price points.

It is said that Mayur Ply’s start-up days were not the easiest. Can you elaborate on the hurdles?
Rightly said. We faced many challenges during our initial days, starting from land acquisitions to receiving licenses and permits from the government to getting bank loans approvals. It was not an easy journey, but we managed to work our way out.

How critical is marketing for you, considering the cut-throat competition that exists today?
Competition is tough and as can be imagined well, days of monopoly are way behind us. Every single day is a new beginning. But having said thus, it is also important to continue working on what has made us what we are and on what can make us what we want to become. Therefore, marketing is an extremely important tool for getting our voice across to the target audience. Marketing is important to tell the market why we are a superior choice. At the same time, we have to pay attention to key elements involved in the production process, like the quality of raw materials purchased, et al.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2011.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

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IIPM Proves Its Mettle Once Again....

Can Electric cars be Big Business? ask M&M

2011-01-11T15:43:00.003+05:30

Mahindra & Mahindra has acquired a 55.2% stake in Bangalore based Reva Electric Car Co. Ltd, which will now be known as Mahindra Reva Electric Vehicle Co. Ltd. M&M had earlier taken the initiative for ‘Sustainable-Mobility’, as it had been promoting green technologies by providing cars like the diesel hybrid Scorpio, hydrogen Alfa three-wheelers et al; the Reva acquisition evidently comes close on their heels. But globally, electric cars haven’t made the kind of business sense that their initial promise had showed – even Reva underwent these issues. Then what’s the logic in M&M taking Reva’s stake? M&M’s takeover move has been made due to a wider perspective – and that is backward integration. Reva’s electric technology will now be adapted into M&M vehicles. M&M has also been working on an electric version of its Maxximo mini truck. But the takeover springs up a few issues. In September 2009, Reva and GM signed a partnership to produce an electric version of the new Chevrolet Spark in India. Would this partnership undergo any changes post this takeover? If that happens, it would be ‘electrifying’, to say the least.

Vineet Singh

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

IIPM B-School Detail
IIPM makes business education truly global
IIPM’s Management Consulting Arm - Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri (IIPM Dean) – ‘Every human being is a diamond’
Arindam Chaudhuri – Everything is not in our hands
Planman Technologies – IT Solutions at your finger tips
Planman Consulting
Arindam Chaudhuri's Portfolio - he is at his candid best by Society Magazine

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Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri's Website

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INTO MY DRAWING ROOM... AND NO MORE?

2010-11-15T18:15:00.001+05:30

The appearance of mobile phones into our lives has started to blur the lines between what is private and what is public at an alarming rate

Just for an example look at what youngsters are doing on Facebook. I am assuming that most people who are on Facebook are attitudinally young. It has become a complete ecosystem where the youngsters do far more than just status updates. From events to places visited to playing games to endless chatting, youngsters keep finding newer ways of interacting and connecting.

If that was all, then it should not have been an issue. The real issue is the amount of private moments, desires and emotions that are posted on online spaces for the whole world to see. There is no dearth of moments people are posting: honeymoon pictures (always private), private parties (not open to all), and even family reunions (is everyone on one’s friends list interested?)

So how is this blurring of public private space going to affect the world of branding? And why should the world of branding be even interested? Well there is are two issues credibility and authenticity that we will have to battle.

Social media has always been seen as a more influential medium than conventional communication channels. Opinions and conversations posted on Social Networking sites are more trusted and valued. I am not sure in coming days this will remain as sacrosanct as it is portrayed today. Will you trust the comments from a group of ‘friends’ who in your opinion have been more open than others?

The second issue is of authenticity. Brands always want to build authenticity in their DNA. Part of building authenticity involves keeping things private, hidden, secret. Will this new all baring, all sharing audience respect this attitude from brands? Will the brands be eventually forced to abolish the line between private and public that they have held sacred become a liability? As always, maybe the emerging reality will lie somewhere in between!

HAS TODAY’S ADVERTISING LOST THE PLOT?

2010-10-19T16:14:00.001+05:30

In the hysterical anxiety to engage and entertain an impatient and promiscuous youth-oriented target base, is advertising forgetting its basic agenda – of informing, convincing and selling? 4Ps B&M investigates

Priti Nair, Managing Partner BBH, in fact disagrees, “Even a couple of years ago, there were many more creatively adventurous ads. Today, maybe a fall-out of the recession, a lot less risk-taking ads are seen. Most stuff is focused, direct… boring. I think we need to push the envelope a lot more.” Lloyd Mathias, President and Chief Marketing Officer, TataTel, brings his own spin to the table, “Like any other social medium, advertising reflects the mood of the times. The simplistic inform-persuade-sell mode worked beautifully for a long time but once communication became sophisticated, technology entered, there was a paradigm shift. Multi-tasking became the order the day. It is not uncommon to see today’s kids on the mobile while hitting the net, right? So in this age of Youtube, Twitter and Facebook, advertising content has to keep pace. It can’t be as direct, naïve and simplistic as it once was. The new-age consumer would dismiss it, straightaway.” Besides, adds Mathias, for hard-core information and details about products and services that are in the hi-ticket category, the net provides it all; one doesn’t have to depend on advertising. “The job [of advertising] today is to primarily push the brand in an endearing fashion that triggers the recall factor.”

Abir Chakravarti, VP Bates, believes that the rules of the game have changed, “The famous AIDA principle – Attention, Interest, Desire, Action – works only in parts, with most of the focus on the first two. In today’s proliferating brands and media avenue universe, the function of advertising has dramatically altered. Unprecedented brand promiscuity among the youth has demanded an unprecedented focus on grabbing their attention. Also, for the entire AIDA principle to work, a 360 degree spin is required. We live in different times and advertising is trying to keep pace. Sure, there are plenty of occasions when guys and brands go over the top. That’s an irresponsible cavalier approach and totally uncalled for!” And Ujjal Sinha, CEO of the Kolkata-based Genesis Advertising, has the last word. He believes that by and large, today’s ad guys have lost the plot. “In their anxiety to go global, they seem to be aping the West. There is a definite sense of insecurity powered by the mistaken belief that the more bizarre, big budget and spectacular the ad, the more it will resonate with the public. It’s a giant leap in the wrong direction…” Now that is another story altogether.

Monojit Lahiri

IIPM Career News - Career opportunities for Young MBAs in Today’s corporate world - Symposium at IIPM Bhubaneshwar

2010-08-28T10:50:00.002+05:30

On 26th June 2010, 4Ps Club of IIPM Bhubaneshwar organized a symposium on the topic, “Career opportunities for Young MBAs in Today’s corporate world”. The guests for the event were Dr. Saroj Kumar Mahapatra - Senior General Manager HR, POSCO India Ltd, Mr. Binod Gopal Mukherjee, Zonal Head Religare Securities and Prof. T.K. Chatterjee who played the role of moderator in the entire event. Both the speakers had stressed on the core importance of the marketing vertical of their respective industries. Dr. Mahapatra emphasized on special importance of B2B marketing process and the careers associated with it where as Mr. Mukherjee threw some more light on how challenging the careers in B2C marketing process are, taking Broking industry as a special case. It was a real value addition for the young & dynamic future Managers as they got a 360 degree picture of their prospective careers in the corporate world.

IIPM Broadcast - Investment Summit In Indian States - IIPM Ahmedabad

2010-08-27T15:40:00.003+05:30

The objective of the event was to harness the knowledge of Management students and make them understand and learn- how one can attract investors to a particular state/region/territory by communicating the Value of their state to the investors, which includes improved transport system, better skilled and semi-skilled labor, safety, security, health, emergency services, accommodation and tourism facilities which all are some lasting legacies of Indian states. The event basically focused on ways to uncover the knowledge,creativity and talent of management students who have just started their management studies .

Students had to present the scope of the given state. Also, they had to market their state with respect to the available natural resources, which is a key economic driver. Ideal representation of the cultural aspects can attract investors in their State.

Ecstatic Celebration erupted at IIPM Ahmedabad for the event Investment summit in India. The Event was very colorful and full of Joy, filled with the colors of the different states and tastes of the different culture of Indian states. Students were very participative and had put lots of hard work to make the event possible. The Event was all about Promoting the state in front of Juries and to convince them that their state is the best place to invest.

Students were to find a particular Industry, which would have immense scope for growth. They have to market their project with respect to the availability of the Natural resources as well as the other resources available in the state like, Road, Rail, Airport and Power resources. Economic drivers and the state’s cultural aspects as well as the Literacy rate of the particular state.

All in all the event was a Joy to watch, students of IIPM are very creative, they have shown how Management aspirants can learn real life Management Learning through this kind of Entertaining event without having any stress.

IIPM Best B School in India - Nutrivita PRESENTS 100 MARKETING BRAINS THAT MOVE AND SHAKE INDIA

2010-08-27T00:15:00.001+05:30

K. K. Chutani

Sr. General Manager – Marketing, Dabur India Ltd.

Consumers today are becoming extremely health-conscious and are looking for healthy and non-traditional gifting options. In this scenario, we decided to roll out our first Diwali offering of a healthy gift in 2002 and it was a welcome change from the calorie-laden traditional gifting options. Our gift-packs offered the best combinations of taste and nutrition. We did our research bit, while continuing our focus on marketing. With our gift packs, we offered consumers a chance to gift their loved ones good health. It was new to us and everyone!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.

“We will change your outlook” – The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read…

The Sunday Indian:-

B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!

For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine’s B School Ranking Scam Exposed

Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor

Don’t trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education

IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years

TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. – For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here

Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

IIPM 4Ps Business & Marketing - Nutrivita PRESENTS 100 MARKETING BRAINS THAT MOVE AND SHAKE INDIA

2010-08-26T11:01:00.000+05:30

Anupam Dutta

MD, Kellogg India

It was in June 2007 when Anupam Dutta bid adieu to Britannia New Zealand Foods where he was the Head of Dairy Business (and instrumental in the success of Britannia cheese), and joined Kellogg India as its Managing Director. It did not take long for Anupam to understand the dynamics of the ready-to-eat breakfast category and the core philosophy of Kellogg – healthy eating. Soon after joining, Anupam forayed into the weight management market by launching Special K, a new brand of cornflakes to help women lose weight. Sensing the potential in the lower strata of the society, Anupam also launched K-paks for Rs.10.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

IIPM 4Ps Business & Marketing - Nutrivita PRESENTS 100 MARKETING BRAINS THAT MOVE AND SHAKE INDIA

2010-08-25T11:55:00.000+05:30

Rameet Arora

Head – Marketing, Colors-Viacom18

I have many memorable marketing moments at Colors, but two stand out. First of course, was the launch of Colors. A mass channel, born out of possibly the most successful media launch we’ve known in a long long time. The second was the launch of Abhishek Aaram Classes, an idea that we have backed to the hilt. It was a big idea that pushed the envelope on the launch of Bingo. It was a phenomenally integrated campaign spanning many mediums.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Nutrivita PRESENTS 100 MARKETING BRAINS THAT MOVE AND SHAKE INDIA

2010-08-23T14:03:00.000+05:30

Anisha Motwani

CMO, Max New York Life

My best marketing moment actually came soon after my joining Max New York Life. Insurance industry is quite unique and special. For some, it is a finance industry, for some others it’s about Protection and Security. But for me, it’s an industry that deals with the business of life. The best moment was therefore one where I got the opportunity to introduce a radically new brand proposition “Karo Zyaada Ka Iraada”. This is a salute to all those who happily challenge status quo and push boundaries for a bigger, brighter tomorrow. MNYL intends to awaken today’s India to re-look at itself, its realities and possibilities. It appears at a time when we as people have realized that we’d be happier if we could articulate and then live our ambitions.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

COCA COLA TOPPLED

2010-08-20T16:44:00.001+05:30

INTERNET SEARCH LEADER Google has once again proved that it has gained generic status. Despite using minimal advertising (see related story in this section), Google has toppled Coca Cola to become the world’s most valuable brand. Wal-Mart remains the Numero Uno though. The ranking was done by Brand Finance, a UK-based leading brand valuation consultancy. The company placed Google above many eminent brands such as GE, IBM and Microsoft. The rankings were based on parameters such as Brand value, Brand ratings and Enterprise value. Coca Cola, IBM and Microsoft slid one rank lower compared to 2009. The key driver to improve a company’s brand is innovation and that’s where technology brands score very well. The ranking calculates the value a brand is expected to generate for its shareholders in the future.

Amir Moin

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

THE FUSION OF A TRIBE, QUITE DIGITALLY

2010-08-19T15:44:00.001+05:30

The downturn has certainly made companies more sensitive to the returns they achieve from their marketing investment and has sharpened their focus on the online medium. Pawan Goyal, MD – Asia and Middle East, Tribal Fusion explains ways to deal with the challenges of space, cost, impact and targeting that are associated with digital marketing

As the online advertising market in India is poised to witness a phenomenal 27% growth per annum from 2008-13 (as per industry forecasts), it is imperative that the message reaches the right online customer at the right time for advertisers to achieve expected results. Pawan Goyal, Managing Director – Asia and Middle East, Tribal Fusion (a digital marketing solutions company) in an exclusive interaction with 4Ps B&M talks about how online advertising can be utilised with greater efficiency.

Today, an integrated marketing communication plan involves all aspects of marketing. What are the key areas that Tribal Fusion focuses on for the marketing of a company?
At Tribal Fusion, we do not believe in a ‘one-size-fit-all’ approach. Client needs and objectives vary from campaign to campaign and from advertiser to advertiser. We enable advertisers to reach the right audience with the right message. We work hand-in-hand with advertisers to build campaigns deeply customised to their specific objectives and goals. By focusing on specific campaign objectives, leveraging industry-specific knowledge of ‘what works’ and offering advertisers a wide range of robust tools for messaging, content and targeting, we provide them with better solutions that drive greater results.

What is the total size of the digital marketing industry? Where do you position Tribal Fusion in this sector?
There are not many authentic sources to show the total size of the digital marketing solutions industry in India, but undoubtedly Internet Display advertising is fast gaining acceptance in the country and is steadily robbing the market share from traditional media. We are a technology-driven media services company that delivers innovative products and services to meet the demands of advertisers and publishers. We collaborate with top quality web publishers to provide advertisers with targeted ad placements. Our publishing partners provide advertisers with a brand-safe advertising environment, while our industry-leading technology platform optimises campaigns in real time, helping them to connect better with their target audience.

It has become imperative for businesses to adopt aggressive promotional strategies to suit to newer ways of browsing and shopping. How do you cater to this?
Online advertising is an efficient and effective advertising option because it enables advertisers to focus more specifically on the target markets and audiences – something they cannot do with television or newspaper advertising. The media and creative optimisation technology that this medium offers further enables them to target the audience with the right message in an environment relevant to them.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

PATRIOTISM AS PROP

2010-08-18T14:52:00.001+05:30

Do the dozens of ads, religiously flooding the publications every Republic and Independence Day, make any sense or carry any weight? 4Ps B&M spoke to some evolved souls to seek answers

Come Republic Day, or Independence Day, or the birth or death anniversaries of Gandhi or Nehru – and a zillion ads, with differing degrees of engagement, conviction or focus, blitz our publications. Why? What is their basic agenda or objective? Do they achieve ‘it’? Aren’t they wasting the tax-payers’ money? Does anybody care to see them? In short, who is doing what for whom?

Leo Burnett’s hi-profile National Creative Director (NCD), Pops Sridhar is first off the block. He summarily dismisses most of these ads as “sheer tokenism, sycophancy and outstanding examples of how not to project landmark events of national importance!” However, he believes, that these affairs – for the evolved and sensitive communication practitioner – present amazing opportunities to showcase the nation’s new-found pride and confidence as being up there with the best. Celebrate their sense of self-reliance, their glowing image in the League of Nations as a vibrant democracy making huge strides, deleting forever their erstwhile complex of the white man or their goods and services. “I am not sure this has been done with any consistency. Connecting the core values of a product or service with the nation’s vision and values can be a fascinating and exciting challenge, if leveraged intelligently. However, there should be a brand-fit – like the patriotic ‘I don’t want to go abroad’ Hero Honda TVC or Hamara Bajaj, Mile Sur... TVCs – otherwise, it will appear corny, clichéd and contrived like most ads of this genre.”

Political commentator and media personality Paranjoy Guhathakurta adds his spin to the debate. He agrees that there is definitely mega-posturing and wearing-patriotism-on-my-sleeves factor on an over-drive “as clearly manifest in these rather embarrassingly inane ads. They can only be matched by the hysterical brand of patriotism emerging from the NRI fraternity. Distance – for them – lends enchantment, I guess! However, despite this lapse and the fact that a disturbing divide and disparity continues to define our amazingly complex land, we continue to remain a solid democracy and zap the world! This needs to be recognised, understood and celebrated. Seen in that light, these ads are doing their job for whatever they are worth. They may not be the most creative, imaginative and professional examples of advertising excellence, but the intent is honourable and well-meaning.”

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

WHEN SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL

2010-08-17T17:24:00.001+05:30

First Rajshri Productions, then Shah Rukh’s Red Chillies Entertainment and now Yash Raj Films. What is it that’s bringing these movie mavericks to the idiot box? 4Ps B&M does a checkout with some eminent industry insiders...

In fact, in the West, it’s already a well established trend where all big studios have a strong TV arm. Following the same mantra, Fox TV has recently made its debut in the Indian entertainment space with a game show ‘Bingo’ starring Abhishek Bachchan, currently on-air on Colors. So the question that pops in ones’ mind is what value addition will these movie mavericks bring to the idiot box?

Industry experts are unanimous that it will take up higher the quality of production of TV shows. Santosh Nair, CEO, UTV, admits to 4Ps B&M that the technical quality, the look, the feel and the grandeur of TV shows will definitely go up with these filmmakers getting into the business. But then, that alone will not suffice; content remains king.

Zee TV’s Motwani agrees with Nair and feels that filmmakers aren’t familiar with the basics of story telling on TV. He says, “They are habitual of telling a story in three hours. There is one beginning and one end. But in television, we have to look at the macro story for the day, for the week, for the month and so on. That is one thing filmmakers need to adapt to.”

Thus, not only will getting the pulse of the television audience be the key to success for these filmmakers on the small screen but also maintaining a unique identity and serving something different at the same time. YRF’s Gangjee agrees, “Our biggest challenge was to try and bring a little bit of film into television. We felt that since some great shows already existed on TV, there was really no point in replicating these. We wanted to try and bring about some kind of difference in television content and hopefully bring in a large part of the audience who are currently looking for options and who may not be regular TV viewers.”

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

JINGALALA EFFECT: PAUSE, STOP AND REWIND!

2010-08-16T16:10:00.001+05:30

Its high price notwithstanding, Tata Sky+ in a very short span of time was able to create a significant place in the consumer’s life, next only to their mobile phones

TATA SKY+

CAMPAIGN: Tata Sky+ launch

AGENCY: Ogilvy India

OBJECTIVE: Tata Sky believed that their product stood for the discerning individuals and to reinforce that image in the minds of the target audience, the company decided to launch the first Personal Video Recorder (PVR) box (branded Tata Sky+) in the country at a price of Rs.9,999. The task at hand was not only to sell a fixed number of the new Tata Sky+ but also to help retain the market share of the base box.

STRATEGIC CHALLENGE: The latter part of 2008 saw the entry of two major telecom players in the Indian DTH space – Airtel Digital & Big TV – and both these players with deep pockets were known for playing cutting price wars while marketing their offerings. At that time, Tata Sky (the second largest player) was already charging a 40-50% premium for its base model. The communication had to help Tata Sky hold on to its market share without shedding its premium positioning and to continue to rake in the same kind of margins.

BIG IDEA: Tata Sky+ was the first PVR box in the country and its USPs were features like recording, rewinding and pausing live television. The idea was to communicate this USP and at the same time ensure that this new set top box does not get positioned as a product only for the tech freaks!

EXECUTION: The first phase of the campaign consisted of creating curiosity about this new product and hence various teasers featuring Aamir Khan were launched. The next phase was the actual launch phase that communicated what this new product was. The final stage was the follow-up phase, which talks about real life application of the product and how it helps them in consumers lives. [For example in one TVC, Aamir talks to his mom-in-law in a leisurely manner as he knows that his live football match is being recorded on Tata Sky+].

EFFECTIVENESS: The campaign was able to meet all quantitative targets that were set for the PVR box as well as the base box. Additionally, a consumer survey that was done in the homes that had Tata Sky+ installed, acknowledged it as the most important consumer electronic product in their homes, next only to their mobile phones.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Will the lion roar again?

2010-08-13T16:04:00.001+05:30

Slowdown had a sobering effect on DLF’s meteoric rise in the early years of this decade. With a new look and renewed vigour, the company attempts to claw its way back to its glory days. by Virat Bahri

Five odd years is a terribly long wait. But it would be worth it for this 17.5 acre plot of land in Lower Parel, Mumbai, which would soon be home to 90-floor super luxury tower. Bought by DLF in 2005 from National Textile Corporation for over Rs.7 billion, the land hasn’t witnessed realty action since then; with the downturn being the obvious spanner in the works. DLF planned a mall initially, but has now decided in favour of residential accommodation with the 2000-odd flats in the tower to cost Rs.50-100 million each with targeted revenue of Rs.150 billion for the company.

2006 was a different era. At that time, an unlisted DLF was hitting all the high gears with surging fortunes in residential, commercial and retail. Then came investments into new businesses – hotels, SEZs, infrastructure, IT parks, next generation malls, asset management… there just seemed to be no end, more certainly so when news of the IPO came up, fuelling speculations that K. P. Singh would be the world’s richest man. The $2.2 billion IPO was launched in 2007, and K. P. Singh was ranked 62 on the Forbes’ list of global richest that year.

India’s realty sector was seeing rising valuations, but it wasn’t really the American bubble. The fact that realty was a lagging indicator for the booming economy had a lot to do with it. But with the slowdown, sentiments went turn turtle across – consumers, banks, corporates, retail. Realtors who had assumed huge debts in the bull run were sitting on land that would provide cash flows way ahead into the future and got further stuck when takers for their existing products dwindled. DLF’s revenues on a standalone basis in FY 2008-09 were Rs.28.28 billion, a dizzying drop of around 49% yoy and profits fell by around 40% to Rs.15.47 billion.

A company like DLF only understands too well that market speculation and sentiment are fickle by nature and are not the true parameters on which a company can judge its merits, or demerits for that matter. But then, understanding how they are playing out at any given point of time is crucial to cushion oneself against the shocks of a viciously cyclical business like real estate. As the company came face to face with a calamitous situation in 2008, it had two prerogatives – the first one was to steer the ship out of the immediate storm and the second one was to take cognizance of its priorities and redefine its business model for the future.

DLF isn’t out of the storm yet. It saw revenues drop by a further 15% to Rs.24 billion and profits falling by 50% to Rs.7.7 billion yoy for FY 2009-10. They missed the target by 16%, and achieved 12.6 million sq. ft. (msf) with an average realisation of Rs.5700 per sq. ft. But as per DLF Limited Vice Chairman Rajiv Singh the bottom is already behind them. He commented on the results, “The overall economic growth, improved liquidity coupled with buyers’ sentiments turning positive, led to a buoyant demand for our projects across segments...” Q4 has been a visible sign of hope with consolidated revenues at Rs.21.46 billion up by 59% yoy. DLF Group Executive Director Rajeev Talwar points out in an exclusive interaction with B&E (featured after this story), “Construction in the last 1 year, which had dropped down from peak levels of 65-70 msf to 40-41 msf has now picked up again to around 56 msf; an increase of around 40%.” And buoyed by the general sense of revival in the Indian economy, DLF expects to rid itself of the devils of downturn for good. B&E analyses how the market leader has evolved in the midst of slowdown and details the prospects for the company in the coming year.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

An outrageous bill for NRIs

2010-08-12T16:00:00.001+05:30

A ludicrous Bill for voting rights of Non Resident Indians is cleared by the Group of Ministers

The Indian government’s pre-occupation with the wellbeing of NRIs is nothing new, rolling out red carpets to them in anticipation of their contribution towards our growth and prosperity. Historically, the investment of NRIs has been considered important for India – since the commencement of liberalization back in early 1990s – for psychological reasons surely (the goodwill it generates in overseas corporate investors who employ Indians or come across them in the normal course) but more for the actual money remittances by NRIs; according to Morgan Stanley, even two years back, NRI remittances were 260% of net FDI and 140% of portfolio investment into India. The figures are mammoth!

Therefore, it was quite surprising that for the past many years, NRIs were actually not allowed to either contest in national elections or even to vote. In its attempt to undo this queasy legislation, the government has drafted a bill through the Group of Ministers (GoM) to allow NRIs to vote. After four years of actually being drafted, the bill in its current form, called the Representation of People’s Bill, will be placed in the monsoon session of the Parliament. Will the new bill, if passed, allow NRIs to vote? Yes. But before one starts celebrating, the bad news is that the bill strangely enforces NRIs to be physically present in their own constituency back home to be able to cast their votes!

Clearly, after four years of dillydallying, this seems to be the most haphazard method of encouraging NRIs to vote. How does one expect 2.4 crore NRIs to fly back to India simply to vote? Overseas Indian Affairs Minister, Vayalar Ravi said, “There is no question of postal ballots because bogus voting will be a concern.” Why couldn’t the government then think of allowing NRIs to vote in their respective embassies? Is there a fear of educated voters finally voting?

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Who do you think is responsible for Price Rise?

2010-08-11T12:59:00.000+05:30

The Central government has been held widely responsible but more people have still held black marketing and hoarding as the principal reason. Rising prices of essential goods including foodstuff and fuel has hit both low and middle income groups. It is widely believed that the Union agriculture ministry and the state governments did not play any proactive role to alleviate people's hardship. The Opposition BJP has also accused the Prime Minister of turning a blind eye to the problem for the sake of coalition politics.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Being Human

2010-08-10T13:10:00.000+05:30

Recently, actor Salman Khan was shooting in Mahabaleshwar, and 30 children from a neighbouring village walked for two hours in the hope to catch a glimpse of the super star. When Salman heard about the children, he went and met them, played with them, allowed them to watch the shooting and had some food and water brought in for the kids. What’s more, he asked his assistant to go to a nearby market and get bicycles for all 30 of the children so that they wouldn’t have to walk back home! Now that’s how one rides straight into people’shearts!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

The curious case of gourmet food

2010-08-09T16:44:00.002+05:30

While many international restaurant brands are already in India, a host of others are lining up to commence operations. But almost every CEO B&E met for this story lamented the over-policing by the government... We take a quantitative stock analysis! by Vareen Gadhoke Ray & Swati Sharma

This growth has had several socio-economic implications, in terms of employment opportunities to a large populace, consumption of goods & services of other players in the food chain and revenues contributed to the government kitty. Take this, on an average, a mid-size restaurant of a seating capacity of 80 people in India employs about 70-80 individuals (directly or indirectly). However, a large sized restaurant can employ about 100-120 people per outlet. Overall, the industry employs around five million people directly (as per National Sample Survey Organisation), in addition to many more who are employed with the ancillary industries and various support functions like logistics suppliers. This figure is further expected to increase to approximately 20 million by 2015, taking into account the growth the restaurant industry would be witnessing.

The Plush Palate

The restaurant industry contributes to the economy in myriad ways, from employment to tax revenues, to being a buyer of goods & services from several other industries. Moreover, its contribution to the overall delight of consumers is undeniable, with eating out being one of the top three leisure activities enjoyed by Indians across the country (as per India Leisure and Entertainment Report 2008-09, The Knowledge Company). Industry players tell us how one factor that has contributed to the same are the extended hours that restaurants are willing to be open for. Even a QSR like McDonald's is changing to that newish triviality. “We plan to keep our stores open from 7am till midnight enhancing convenience for consumers,” says Vikram Bakshi, MD, McDonald’s India.

With increase in disposable incomes of the average Indian consumer, the market size and potential of restaurants is only expected to rapidly grow in the future. The propensity to eat out increases with affluence levels; however, eating out is also a very prominent leisure activity among the lower SECs as well. States Gaurav Jain, Director, RTC Restaurants (that owns Sbarro & Ruby Tuesday), “Eating out is directly related with affluence. People at all levels of society are looking at an experience; a good time; a change when they go out.”

Consumers are travelling more often and demand innovation. Mexican, Thai, Korean & Japanese are the most popular newer international cuisines; even more niche ones like Malay & Lebanese. Both Indian and international cuisines and cooking styles are learning and benefiting from each other. International chains like McDonald’s & KFC are introducing local tastes and flavours. At the same time, restaurants such as Bikanerwala & Haldiram’s have learned from western counterparts in terms of selling traditional road-side cuisines and dishes in a clean and hygienic manner through commercial modern format set-ups.

The Equity Gameplan

Anticipating a further boom in the domestic consumption story, a number of private equity deals have been finalised in the restaurant space. The most recent equity deal concluded was Coffee Day Holdings, where three PE major – New Silk Route, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Standard Chartered PE have invested about Rs.8 billion for around 25% stake in the company. Other PE players active in the Indian restaurant business are Kotecha Capital (Rs.5 billion) Indivision (Rs.1.5 billion) and SAIF Partners (Rs.900 million).

Apart from PE, companies are trying other possible routes to raise capital. Fast food chain, Domino’s Pizza has recently had a successful IPO and raised close to Rs.12 billion, becoming the first restaurant company to go public in India.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

‘V’iciously ‘A’bnormal ‘T’ax!

2010-08-07T15:12:00.001+05:30

Inter-State VAT variations are proving to be the chronic ulcer for trade and commerce in the country. And the problems are visible. Will the yet to be implemented GST prove a breather? by Savreen Gadhoke

Kerala’s coconut farmers also faced troubles when the State Government levied 12.5% VAT on copra and other coconut products. Subsequently however, the government was forced to waive-off the tax to support exports to Tamil Nadu.

While Tamil Nadu levies a VAT of 12.5% on automobiles, marbles, tiles, refrigerators, ACs and timber, the State of Puducherry charges just 4%. So why would you buy your next car or your new twin-door refrigerator in Tamil Nadu? A VAT of 12.5% is levied on silk in Karnataka, J&K and Maharashtra, while in Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Bihar & Uttaranchal, the tax applicable is just 4%. Tyres and tubes attract 8% VAT in Haryana, while in Delhi they attract 4%. The stark difference shows up as on as much a burger at Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC). Delhi levies a tax of 12.5% on a KFC snack, while the hungry buyers end up shelling out 13.5% more as tax in UP! Naturally, these differences in VAT hamper sales of certain commodities in select States. “Traders are at a disadvantage due to variations in VAT. If any commodity is charged 12.5% somewhere and the neighbouring states charges 4%, certainly, the higher VAT state will lose. And, if that commodity is a high value product, the difference is much. So, obviously the buyer will get it from the adjoining state,” says D. P. Nag, Secretary, Bengal National Chamber of Commerce and Industries. The culprit – the Constitutional Right that the States have, exercising which, they can to charge VAT. And this causes discrepancies in prices, despite there are friendly treaties and trade agreement between neighbouring States.

Be that as it may, VAT, which was implemented with a view to simplify the taxation structure has had negative impacts on certain businesses. However, efforts are being made by various State Governments to keep the VAT rates in sync with the neighbouring States. For instance, the Chief Ministers of Delhi, Haryana and UP are soon scheduled to meet to mull over how to reduce variations in VAT levied on diesel, so as to save the aggrieved diesel retailing lot of Delhi. But the truth is: despite efforts on the part of the State machineries, uniform tax remains the only working hypothesis. There is some hope with the Ministry of Finance’s target of implementing Goods & Services Tax (GST) by 2011, which will impose uniform tax rates at a national level. But as market experts believe, it seems a far-fetched dream for now. “At this juncture, no state can be tamed. The GST regime is showing some hope, but the road to that is not as easy as we have a Quasi-Federal Constitution. Under this, states enjoy some autonomy, particularly in List II, where states enjoy full rights to tax as per their whims. Will any state want to lose that autonomy?” questions Ramendra Nath Ganguly, Former Assistant Commissioner – Sales Tax, Ministry of Finance.

A uniform GST is a dream. The asymmetrical VAT is reality. Simply said, the answer lies in market economics, and only the simple Marshallian Law of Demand and Supply can perhaps wipe off what the traders hate for now.

With regional inputs from N. Asokan (Chennai), Anu Warrier (Kerala) and C. S. Bhattacharjee (West Bengal)

Savreen Gadhoke

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Walk out, or not?

2010-08-06T12:18:00.002+05:30

If generation X thought ‘family is foremost’, for generation Y, are parents a pest?

Oprah: So now both of you are living with your (Abhishek’s) parents…
Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan: Yeah.
Oprah: Now how does that work?!
Abhishek: You live with your family?
Oprah: No…
Abhishek: How does that work?!

…and there was a roaring applause. For years now there have been discussions and debates over India aping the West, and one of the bones of contention being youngsters wanting to separate from their families and lead an independent life. I was often puzzled when my friends would want to have a separate home, until one day I had an elaborate discourse with my cousin who is now happily settled in the US. “The motivation to move to the US was the thought of being away from my parents”, he’d mentioned. “For one, it’s an escape from the everyday explanations of one’s whereabouts. Apart from that, I wanted to handle my own life without being pestered about issues like cleaning, studying, spending money, watching TV or calling friends over. I used to have an argument almost every second day with my parents, but now that I’m away, our relationship is beautiful.” With the newer generation striding ahead of the past generation, such problems are prevalent in most homes. Sushma Virk, school teacher and mother of twin girls, gives a parent’s point of view, “There’s a point in time where parents have to control the children; probably during those early teenage years. And then there are times, early 20 onwards, when parents have to listen to the children because then they are mature enough to understand what’s good for them.” On being asked if she’d allow her girls to separate if her rules don’t go down well with them, Sushma said, “Not at all! As far as possible I will try to find a middle path. I guess this is the time when children want to have fun. So, why not let them live their way?”

People all over the world look up to India’s culture, especially because of our strong family bonds, and it’s a sad sight when tiny tiffs lead one to an impulsive decision of walking out of home. Opines Dr. Sanjay Chugh, “Living on your own makes you learn new things about life and your own self. It makes you more independent, self-reliant and responsible, if the freedom is rightly used. All these are desirable qualities, that’s why, if there is opportunity along with resources, rarely would anyone like to ignore it.” But the days ahead might not turn out to be all rosy. “Separating is an important decision and so, the family’s mental preparedness is crucial. If both the parents and the child are mentally and emotionally ready, then the whole shift could be far more peaceful and stress free. If not, the chances of emotional breakdowns are high”, said Sanjay.

To avoid reaching a crossroad of heartaches, both parents and children need to realise that where there’s love and understanding, a little adjustment can definitely be accommodated.

Spriha Srivastava

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

ONE YEAR AFTER LTTE

2010-08-05T16:03:00.001+05:30

One year after the Tigers were silenced, the victorious Mahinda Rajapakse is stronger than ever. But as the Tamil Diaspora nurtures the dream of a Tamil Eelam, N. Asokan finds that only a meaningful political solution can bring permanent peace

The Fourth Eelam War in Sri Lanka finally came to an end on May 17, 2009, with the LTTE international relations head, K.P. alias Selvarajha Padmanathan, announcing that “The LTTE have decided to silence the guns.” Over 25,000 Tamils died in the final three months of the Fourth Eelam War which started in 2006. LTTE had waged armed struggle against marginalisation of minority Tamils in the island nation for almost three decades. From a position of controlling over 15,000 square kilometer, they were pushed to 2 square kilometer at the end of the War, with scores of Tamil civilians moving along with them. The end of LTTE came when its supremo Veluppilai Prabhakaran’s body was identified from the Nandhikadal lagoon.

Selevaraja Padmanathan, who was trying to revive the struggle with support from the Tamil Diaspora, was also arrested in Malaysia and brought to Colombo. As the first anniversary of the end of the war passes, the island nation has witnessed a series of important events in the last one year. In the political front, riding over the euphoria of triumph, Mahinda Rajapakse secured a massive victory in the presidential elections, he arrested war hero-turned political opponent Sarath Fonseka. Rajapakse’s party also secured a massive victory in the parliamentary elections. Rajapakse and his brothers have brilliantly strengthened their individual positions in no time.

But what has happened to the Tamils battered by the war? As the war progressed, LTTE was continuously on the run in the northern areas. It had already withdrawn from the east as their renegade ‘Col Karuna’ teamed up with Colombo. As a strategic move, it took three lakh Tamils along with it when it withdrew from its operational headquarters at Kilinochi. For three months, all these men, women and children were continuously on the run. These civilians became sitting ducks for the Lankan forces’ heavy artillery and planes. Everyday, scores of people died. When it was all but obvious that the LTTE would be defeated, they escaped the clutches of the Tigers and came to the side of the Lankan army. The strategy of the Tigers had been to get international involvement to force a ceasefire and simultaneously trying to bring about a possible turnaround in the fate of the war. It did not follow the script. Even the emotions whipped up in the state of Tamil Nadu in the run-up to the parliamentary elections did not yield the desired results. The octogenerian leader, M. Karunanidhi, addressed Tamil sentiments by taking part in a three-hour fast.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

‘Smart’phones or just a ‘dumb’ call?

2010-08-04T12:58:00.001+05:30

Michael Dell is betting big on smartphones to make up for the lack of any ‘killer app’. Is this a two-years-too-late strategy? by Neha Saraiya

On a fine Tuesday afternoon in Tokyo, a year back, Michael Dell made public his intentions to enter the smartphones market. The world was taken aback. Not because this sounded like a far-fetched dream for Dell, who had been facing some tough quarters in the laptop market of late, but because this announcement came some good quarters too late, for speculations about Dell’s intentions to acquire Palm had been doing the rounds for quite some time then. Cut to the present, his wish to get into the smartphones arena has turned out to be real; getting hold of Palm didn’t. [Hewlett-Packard, the number one vendor in the PC market acquired Palm for $1.2 billion on April 28, 2010.]

Truth is that even 13-months after Dell first announced its entry into the mobile category (a period during which it has already launched a pair of smartphones – one with Google’s Linux-based Android OS – the Dell Mini 3i smartphone, which was launched in the Chinese market in November 2009 and another – the Dell Aero smartphone, which will soon hit US market through AT&T), many in the industry still doubt its future. The whisper in the woods at present however is that Dell is planning to launch five new smartphone models within the next 12 months, which include four Android OS-based and one Windows Phone 7 OS-based smartphones. Ron Garriques, President of Dell Global Consumer Group says, “Our entry into the smart phone category is a logical extension of Dell’s consumer product evolution over the past two years.”

To hit back hard at critics, Dell is also exploring strategic tie-ups to move into newer geographies, the latest being announced on April 14, 2010, with telecom provider Telefonica. The strategic implication of this deal is that, while it will improve Dell’s chances at newer hardware and services, on the other it will give Dell’s smartphones access to the Latin American and European markets. Dell is also looking at strengthening its presence across emerging Asian economies like China & India. So can smartphones do to this once-Lord-of-the-PC-Ring, what the iPhone did to Apple (the iPhone is the highest selling product under the Apple unbrella today, acccounting for 40.33% of its revenues in Q1, 2010)?

From a category perspective, Dell may just have taken the right gambit. As per the Q1, 2010 report by IDC, the global smartphone market grew by twice as much as the overall mobile phone market on a year-on-year basis (56.7% vis-a-vis 21.7%). Better still, as compared to the previous year, the quarter gone by saw smartphones account for 18.8% of all mobile phones shipped during the quarter, as compared to 14.4% a year back. Also, all the other players have contributed in a fairly equal proportion to this growth. While Apple grew by 131.6%, other players like Motorola, HTC, Nokia and RIM also maintained high double-digit improvements in volumes (growth figures of 91.7%, 73.3%, 56.9% and 45.2% respectively). The report also highlighted how a total of 54 million smartphones were shipped in the first quarter of this year – an increase of 56.7% from the same quarter a year ago. These are statistics enough to prove a heated-up table, enough to justify Dell’s timing to call it a bluff, with smartphones market on a higher growth trajectory as compared to even the overall mobile phone market.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Fiends on the prowl

2010-08-03T13:15:00.001+05:30

A TSI sting operation finds how paedophilia has turned into a thriving business in Delhi, NCR and Mumbai. Taking advantage of kids’ poverty and craze for brands and gadgets, middlemen get rich by supplying minor boys and girls to satiate the desire of sick, rich men, many of them NRIs and foreigners. By Abhishek Kumar and Neeraj Rajput

TSI – I have never done it before. That’s why I am asking I hope he will not be troubled.
Rupesh – No buddy, there is nothing wrong. It is you who will have to take the lead.

TSI – Are these children not aware?
Rupesh – They know everything. These children will be with me. Rest is not a problem as I have closed their ears... that they have to be with you people... only thing is that we cannot take them to a hotel.

TSI – Where do we take them then?
Rupesh – Search for some house of someone known to you.

Rupesh – There is no problem as far as they are concerned. Only thing bothering me is that I don’t want to take you and them to any hotel, guest house etc.

Rupesh – If I quote the price, it may shock you. You asked for 1 but I have brought 2 and they are of perfect choice.

Rupesh – Earlier we have charged different rates. We have taken Rs. 25,000 and even Rs. 30,000.

TSI - Then also, please quote some amount.
Rupesh – Rs 25,000.

Rupesh gets angry:

Rupesh – I have done it many times but they are doing this for first time...If I get another client, then also my children will go..but they will not go to any place where I will get troubled.

Rupesh – You are not my first client, I have clients in Canada, Australia, Singapore and Pakistan and everywhere. But none of them are like you who disturb me so much. I have so many clients that I don’t have time for all of them.

We were astonished to find the kids in Mumbai as well as in Delhi/Noida so well trained by their handlers. They exactly knew which questions to answer and when to maintain a studied silence.

But we were still not sure if Rupesh was a hardened supplier of child sex workers to paedophiles. It could also be that he had heard from Maria that we were millionaires and decided to brainwash some kids to make some easy money.

So, we decided to pay a second visit to Mumbai. This time he had two other kids with him. Now we were convinced that this guy was in the trade for real.

Rupesh – For the time being, take these children. Later I will bring even those whom you met before.

TSI – Listen son, what have you told your mother?
Kids – I am going for a walk.

TSI – You know him?
Kids – Yes.

TSI – Since when do you know him?
Kids – I know him from before.

TSI – You know what you are supposed to do?
Kids – Yes.

TSI – Something bothering you?
Kids – No.

TSI – You have done this earlier?
Kids – No.

TSI – When you have not done this earlier, how do you know what you are supposed to do?
Kids – Rupesh told us all.

TSI – What has he said?
Kids – Smiles and giggles.

TSI – Come on, say it.
Kids – (Smiles) He has said nothing.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Time to revisit the basket & egg theory

2010-08-02T13:08:00.001+05:30

After a long lull, one can finally see some action at Walmart’s India headquarter. But that action seems pretty lackadaisical by Walmart’s standards... Is everything alright? by Savreen Gadhoke

Here comes the good news – they might have some critical sense in their caution. India has also been leveraged by Walmart to a large extent to be a global supplier. During the launch of the second cash-and-carry, Scott Price, President & CEO, Walmart Asia confirmed this, “India is already exporting goods worth $125 million to Walmart stores across the globe and we hope to take this figure to $1 billion in the next few years.” Even though that is an extremely small part of this Bentonville behemoth’s global sales (for fiscal 2010) of $405 billion, it’s a good start.

But some of Walmart’s moves have been well targeted and praiseworthy competitive. Strategically located in the midst of the agriculture capital of the country (Punjab), Best Price Modern Wholesale store has had the benefit of locally sourcing fresh fruits and vegetables from farmers under its ‘Direct Farm Project’. With each store demanding $6-7 million for setting up, nearly 90% of the 6,000 SKUs (stock keeping units) stacked in each of the stores are sourced locally. This makes Bharti Walmart competitively priced against local wholesalers and the store, therefore, is able to pass the cost benefit to its customers, which comprises resellers, horecas (hotel, restaurant and catering sector), institutions, et al. For instance, Bharti Walmart is able to sell FMCG products 10% cheaper and food grains & cereals at 2-5% less price than the local wholesaler. Prices in apparels and merchandise segments too are 25% cheaper.

Moreover, for the entire Punjab, Haryana and Delhi region, Walmart has one distribution centre in Bannur. This too saves considerable cost. But that also exposes the current chink – over-dependence of the retailer on just one region. Even the up-coming stores are expected to be launched in Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, MP & UP clearly signifying Bharti Walmart’s extra reliance on north India. Experts like Rajesh Tanwar, Director, Integrated Retail Solutions, comment how the vagaries of monsoons could play havoc with Bharti Walmart’s supply dynamics in any year or even quarter. And other issues like competition (Tata recently announcing plans to launch its first C&C store by the end of this fiscal) fighting for similarly located resources could force Bharti Walmart in a corner.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
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For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

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IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Are you in the CLUB ?

2010-07-31T13:24:00.003+05:30

To find world-class brands offered at insane discounts is every fashionista’s dream, and it is now being made a reality by exclusive online shopping clubs

‘A penny saved equals a penny earned’ goes an old adage and the latest fashion spreading like wildfire is pretty much piggyback riding on this wise saying, and on the fact, which researches would have us believe, that urban Indians in the age group of 20-35 spend more time over the Internet than watching TV. These two factors are becoming the raison d’etre for sites selling luxury brands, at discounted rates as steep as 70%! These sites are also maintaining the exclusivity factor attached with premium brands by ensuring the site remains members-only. 99labels.com, fashionandyou.com and brandmile.com are among the slew of online shopping clubs that have opened shop in the past few months, and their members not only include the urban crowd, but also people from small towns and out of India! As I write this, among the several items on sale are Satya Paul saris at a 50% discount, Cadini wallets, shoes and ties at 60% off and Roberto Cavalli and Moschino watches are being offered at half their original prices!

This isn’t a new concept though, and several websites from around the world have been following this model with great success. But when shopping for apparel, how does one gauge the fit and the fabric from photos alone? Divya, a 27-year-old from Delhi, shied away from making a purchase from Fashion and You for exactly this reason. “I was going to pick a GAS Jeans but at the last moment I decided otherwise, cos I wasn’t too sure of the size… GAS was selling according to US sizes, and I didn’t want to take a chance.” 99label’s CEO Ishita Swarup discussed the same issue with us and said, “Not all kinds of apparel work. We’ve realised clearly that fitted items don’t work. So, most bottoms will not work very well. Especially for women, the exact fit is critical. But there are lots of other apparels that have a slightly lose fit, which work very well. We also have a fairly detailed size chart so we have sizes small, medium, large, how they correspond with the UK size, the US size, and, even within that, what does small mean in terms of shoulder, bust, waist, etc. Lastly, we also have a very flexible return policy.”

Most Indians have been rather timid in making online transactions, but that is swiftly changing. While cash on delivery is an option, Ishita reveals that “almost 70% of our members use credit cards or electronic banking.”

These sites have also had to fight a tough battle convincing brands to participate in their sales. While they’re mostly wary about discounting their products around the year, some brands like Hidesign don’t go on sale at all as they don’t want to be known as a discount brand. But being able to liquidate their stocks, save on costs of retail and marketing, the closed-door member-only concept and access to a huge number of clients are all factors helping companies warm up to these shopping clubs.

In less than half a year, several such shopping clubs have sprung up, as the entry barriers are very low for Internet-run businesses. And in less than half a year, people from Mumbai, Delhi, Dibrugarh, Trichy and overseas have logged in and shopped from the comfort of their homes. These clubs are here to transform shopping, and they might even soon displace diamonds and become every lady’s, or maybe even every man’s, new best friend!

Anu Gulmohar

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Turning the heat on its head

2010-07-30T12:04:00.000+05:30

An early summer and an inspiring growth last year have encouraged consumer durable players to plan aggressive volume expansions. B&E takes a look at the ‘cool’ factors that will enable them to beat the heat by Neha Saraiya

We are also extending a line of 65 AC models, which are 100% BEE star rated.” BMR (bottom mounted refrigerator) technology patent holder and white goods major Haier has earmarked a budget of around Rs.100 crore for its production facilities and is aggressively focusing on product categories like deep freezers and commercial AC’s as a part of its summer plans (besides home ACs and refrigerators).

Then there is the lower penetration level in rural and tier III cities, due to which, consumer durable players are raking their minds planning their distribution strategy to be able to service these markets. Godrej appliances recently launched a slew of entry level refrigerators to cater to such markets as the penetration level in these markets is just 5% currently. Similarly, LG India, whose rural contribution is 15% currently, is hoping to increase it to 20% this year. The company is operating mobile vans across the various grain markets in Punjab and other places in order to showcase its products and pull demand.

Apart from an early summer this year and increasing demand from the rural areas, another reason that has worked in favor of the durable giants is the replacement cycle of durable products, which is getting shorter. For instance, the replacement cycle for domestic appliances was 12 years earlier and has come down to 7-8 years now, which has helped trigger demand further. So durable players are leaving no stone unturned to bank on this opportunity. But it is still relatively hard to markdown their ability to scale up their production capacity and in turn play on volumes. Interestingly the consumer durables’ production, which is principally triggered by discretionary demand, has recorded a high growth in FY10 so far, but experts warn that pricing will play a crucial role in increasing the penetration level of white goods, which is in turn dependent on raw material costs and excise duties, which have already increased in this year and are subject to increase again. However, it may be noted that the widening of tax slabs has also put more money in the hands of consumers; giving a fillip to their ambitions to spoil themselves further.

While most of the input costs have been absorbed by the players in December 2009, it has necessitated a marginal increase in the prices of the products. Thus a marginal hike in prices of categories like refrigerators (by 3%) and ACs (by 4-5%) is unavoidable. Another reason for a hike in product prices is the expected excise duty increase from 8% to 10%, wherein the most affected products in the consumer durables and electronics category will be televisions, refrigerators and ACs, which will eventually escalate the prices further. The call of the hour for the industry is the speedy implementation of GST (Goods and Service Tax), which can lead to a significant diminution in the prices of products.

For that, the best they can do is to continue to lobby and hope that the FM delivers on his promise. But the coming summer months are not about passively hoping for better times. They have to build impressive sales numbers within the coming months, to align themselves better with their long term objectives; because India is a market too lucrative to let such short term blips come in their way.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

A look for every Mausam

2010-07-29T14:27:00.000+05:30

Shahid Kapur doesn’t shy from experimenting with his looks. After the tanned and long-hair look in Kaminey, spiked hair was next for Shahid. And now he was recently spotted with a beard, and while he is finding it a bit uncomfortable, it is one of the looks being considered for his dad’s film Mausam. He will apparently carry off two or three different looks in this film. We can’t wait to see Shahid in all of his new avatars!

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

“We should aspire & work for prosperity””

2010-07-26T16:08:00.000+05:30

In this exclusive interaction with virat bahri of B&E, Dr. Isher Judge Ahluwalia discusses her views on the potential & challenges of the Indian economy

B&E: What are our most critical challenges with respect to urbanization?
IJA: We are much less urbanized as compared to many countries across the world. We are going to see a very rapid pace of urbanization in the coming decades. Are we preparing our cities? What should we be doing in order to plan for better functioning cities, larger cities, more cities? It is not just about building mega cities, but also about connecting villages to small cities and middle cities to big cities. We should ask ourselves, “What is the government’s principal responsibility? And which level of government is going to fulfill that?” If it is the municipal corporation’s responsibility to give us clean drinking water, do we have a secure revenue base for the municipality to deliver that? Does the municipal corporation have the systems which allow it to deliver that? Does the municipal corporation have accountability? For example, one of the major revenue sources for urban local bodies is property tax. Who levies the property tax? The state government. At one stroke before an election, the Punjab, Rajasthan and Haryana governments abolished property tax. Out goes the major revenue base of the municipalities there. How can we see to it that we protect their revenue base and make our federal polity work? These are the real challenges. You need institutions in place. The 13th Finance Commission has just given its report on how fiscal transfers should be made to urban local bodies.

B&E: Urbanisation in India reveals a critical planning problem. For instance, cities saw a boom in personal transportation much before the roads were ready. What is the right way ahead?
IJA: Public-private partnership is an instrumentality. It can deliver results if it is structured in a manner where both partners clearly define their commitments and rewards, where risks to the project are accounted for and assigned clearly, and the contract is transparent and awarded through competitive bidding. The 24x7 water project in three cities of Karnataka has been a successful case of PPP. The Gorai project in Mumbai which has recently scientifically closed a landfill and earned carbon credits worth Rs.70 crore is another case of a successful PPP. My colleague, Ranesh Nair and I have written about these projects in our monthly column in the Indian Express. But no project or no model can be taken lock stock and barrel. It needs to be adapted to the specific case. As far as public transport is concerned, I agree with you. In New York, people have cars but they take them out only on weekends. On week days, they travel by metros, which are simply much more efficient. For that, the metro has to be of a certain quality and so well connected that people can efficiently move within the city. We have to do this; I agree with you.

For more articles, Click on IIPM Article.

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2010.

An Initiative of IIPM, Malay Chaudhuri and Arindam chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist).

For More IIPM Info, Visit below mentioned IIPM articles.
“We will change your outlook” - The Sunday Indian on B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED! A must read...
The Sunday Indian:-
B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!
For Exclusive Footage by Sunday Indian Click Here

Outlook Magazine's B School Ranking Scam Exposed
Business Standard Exposes the Outlook Magazine Money Editor
Don't trust the Indian Media!

IIPM enters into media education
IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years
TSI exposes b school ranking scamsters Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Premchand Palety of C fore. - For Complete Sting Operation Video Click Here
Pioneer Exposes the fraud called Mahesh Sharma and Mahesh Peri of Career 360 and Barbel Schwertfeger of mba-channel.com
IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy
Prof Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM on MF HUSAIN‎

Act

2010-07-02T16:27:00.000+05:30

Hollywood hottie Megan Fox moved out of the “Transformers” franchise recently, and stepping into her shoes is Victoria’s Secret model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. While 24-year-old Megan had angered Michael Bay, director of the “Transformers” series, by asserting in press interviews that her role in “Transformers II” didn’t require ‘a great deal of real acting’, it’s interesting to note that newbie model Rosie has no acting experience at all! Megan, meanwhile, has a plum role in “Pirates of the Caribbean 4” to concentrate on, in which she is to play a ‘beautiful mermaid who uses her powers of persuasion to trick Jack Sparrow!’ Well, with all this talk about acting, we can’t wait to find out if she can actually act!

For Complete I I P M Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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Exceptionally talented dancing troupe of persons with disability

2010-06-30T11:59:00.000+05:30

Pasha hails from Anekallu, a village near Bangalore, and is now a professionally trained actor, Bharatanatyam and Kathak dancer, a graduate in choreography and inventor of Therapeutic Theatre for persons with disabilities. He has worked as an International Scholar at Cornell University, and special pedagogic dance theatre director at many schools in Finland and at Sutra Dance Theatre – Malaysia, USA and UK. He is also a National Award winner. “For the past 10 years, I have been working in Delhi with differently-abled children and at present over 150 children avail of dance therapy in our Foundation. Though most girls here are deaf and dumb, you don’t see a shadow of sadness on their faces. The feeling of loneliness or alienation has vanished,” Pasha said proudly.

Nishisth is a proud member of AUF. He has visited foreign countries and performed in many AUF productions including Natya on Wheels. “I feel proud to be the member of this foundation. Guruji has taught us what life is and how to face it. I have learnt Bharatanatyam and various kinds of dances from Guruji. He is everything for us,” he says. Ashiq Ali, Kumar Manish, Harbir, Sonu Gupta, Ishrath, Priya Sharma, Karuna, Alka, Ajay Kumar are some other students presently learning and performing dance here. They were part of the show recently held in Noida, UP.

The foundation receives a number of e-mails and letters from parents of differently-abled children from various parts of India to treat their children and engage them with the foundation. With limited space, however, it’s been a tough task for Pasha. “Sometimes children directly come here and join us. Sometimes we do workshops, events and visit slums where we find variety of differently-abled children with multi-talents. So, we have given them a platform to prove themselves. People in Jhilmil Colony celebrate when they see Gulshan Kumar’s performance on the television. After performing in America and UK, his confidence level is now sky high. At the end of the day, we see satisfaction in these children, which is important”, says Pasha.

Guruji Pasha has urged the government several times to use 3 per cent reservation for disabled consistently. The 1995 Disability Act says that there should be equal opportunity for every disabled person, but sheer negligent attitude of the government compelled the foundation to hire legal help to allow them to draw attention to the apathy demonstrated by various government departments. “I have written many letters to Cultural Department and even to the Sangeet Natak Academy, but never received a reply from them. It shows that they are unaware and not bothered about these children.” Even after passing the Disability Act, there is little done. Pasha acknowledges that the journey in the last 30 years hasn’t been easy and, he says, the journey in the future is not going to be easy either. In any case, to this group of determined people, it is not a concern.

For Complete I I P M Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Read these article :-

IIPM enters into media education

IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!

Outlook Magazine money editor quits
Don't trust the Indian Media!

You Cannes or you can’t

2010-06-22T15:10:00.000+05:30

Though the 63rd Cannes Film Festival was an unusually low-key affair, the closing night Palme d’Or triumph for a Thai artist-filmmaker helped the show end on a high note, writes Saibal Chatterjee

Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul receives the Palme d'Or from French actress Charlotte Gainsbourg

The 63rd Cannes Film Festival shunned excess. It attracted fewer stars, delivered a lower dose of razzmatazz and its ‘selection officiel’ did not have the usual complement of films. It was probably symptomatic of a world only just beginning to emerge from a meltdown. However, the carnival-like atmosphere that inevitably engulfs the world’s premier film festival was anything but missing. It was business as usual on the French Riviera.

As the excitement surrounding the race for the Palme d’Or peaked, the jury’s choice of winner left a sizeable chunk of attendees a tad perplexed. For Thai avant-garde filmmaker Apichatpong “Joe” Weerasethakul’s singular triumph at was more than just a vindication of his brand of personal cinema.

The decision of the nine-member jury headed by Hollywood maverick Tim Burton to award one of cinema’s biggest prizes to Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives was nearly as much about art and politics.

But that is the way it almost always pans out in Cannes. The festival revels in springing surprises. It celebrates ground-breakers.

Weerasethakul is nothing if not one. His exquisite Uncle Boonmee, the first Asian film to win the Palme d’Or since 1997, pushes the boundaries of the cinematic medium with unwavering precision and intent – the defining attributes of the 39-year-old filmmaker’s art. His cinema makes no concessions to the norms of the mainstream Thai movie industry dominated by action flicks, period epics and horror tales.

In matters more mundane, the inventive director has for years been a vocal opponent of the censorship laws in place in his country and the Cannes award for his latest film is a tribute to the spirit of creative freedom that he represents at a time when Thailand is in the throes of unprecedented civil strife.

The political significance of this year’s Palme d’Or, therefore, was not lost on anybody. But, then, Cannes and politics have always gone hand in hand.

For Complete I I P M Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Read these article :-

IIPM makes record 10,000 placements in five years

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!

Outlook Magazine money editor quits
Don't trust the Indian Media!

The myth of security council

2010-06-16T14:20:00.000+05:30

Does permanent membership in the UN Security Council matter?

Iranian President Ahmadinejad and his Zimbabwean counterpart Mugabe recently have urged for reform in the UN Security Council. Well, their calling for reforms may not egg on the world community into serious consideration but the issue for some nations has become of extreme importance, undoubtedly. Germany, Japan, Brazil, India along with South Africa, Egypt and many others are fighting wholeheartedly to secure permanent membership in the Security Council. Japan's former PM Junichiro Koizumi, his Indian counterpart, Dr. Manmohan Singh and the Brazilian President Lula urged nations to support them. This, invariably, creates an impression that they are in a rat-race, well, but for their betterment?

One side of the story is countries like India are suffering from countless severe issues from internal instability, terrorism, poverty and others. Thus, permanent membership in the Security Council may seem simply foreign policy glamour. The other side of the story is that domestic issues are of serious concern and need immediate domestic policy interventions. But then, can that be at the cost of foreign policy concerns? The People's Republic of China joined the Security Council in 1971 when it didn’t have economic prosperity as it has today and it had the same problems that India still suffers from.

Reforms in the UN Security Council are important to bring more democracy into the world's most powerful body as Kofi Annan, the former UN Secretary-General said, “We are the ones who go around the world lecturing everybody about democracy. I think it is time we apply it to ourselves, and then show that there is effective representation.” More importantly, influential nations should join the Council for the interest of the world community to oppose US hegemony. The world might not have seen devastating wars like that in Iraq or Afghanistan, had India, Brazil, Japan or Germany been able to use a veto power. Moreover, even if permanent membership doesn't directly guarantee that age-old plights of developing countries in the IMF and WTO would be removed overnight, it will definitely enhance global integration. It might not give India or Brazil a status equal to that of the US or Russia, but it will certainly guarantee the end of a colonial attitude prevailing within and without for centuries. It’s clearly unfair that only 5 out of 191 nations enjoy the liberty of veto power and dictate the terms of world affairs while 186 nations wait for their two-year term of the non-permanent membership. If a nation is responsible to take care of the plight of its citizens, it also has the responsibility to take care of the poor, hungry and homeless Afghanis, who are victims of vulnerability. Ergo, the Security Council membership should be targeted not to fulfil one’s ego, but to ensure global equality.

But will the above mentioned nations be allowed to join? Japan is the 2nd largest donor to UN projects. Germany is a strong economy, donor and more importantly, a much more open nation than many western countries. Even India and Brazil fulfil all ‘written’ possible criteria to join the Council. But then, there’s much a slip between the cup and the ‘written’ lip.

For Complete I I P M Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Read these article :-

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!

Outlook Magazine money editor quits
Don't trust the Indian Media!

Not a garden city anymore

2010-06-15T16:13:00.000+05:30

In the name of development many trees are being felled

Bengaluru is fast turning into a desert. To improve the city’s infrastructure, the government has planned train projects worth Rs 1,000 crore and for that trees will be felled. This week, the state government announced railway projects worth Rs 600 crore including local rail, mono rail and high speed rail link projects. The city’s urbanisation drive has led to a massive tree felling. According to official sources, in the last two years the garden city has lost nearly 5,000 trees.

Shockingly, half of Bengaluru’s greenery has been destroyed for road widening, flyovers and other projects. By now more than 300 lakes have dried up. Besides, some 50,000 trees have been axed for various development works. In 2008, a joint survey conducted by Bengaluru Environment Trust and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP)showed that the city has less than 7 per cent of its area under tree cover. In fact, the tree cover has come down to less than 50 per cent in a few decades. Now Bengaluru has only 15 lakh trees in its green belt. Dr A. N. Yellappa Reddy, environmentalist and former Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer, says: “Nearly 50,000 trees have been felled for Namma Metro and other projects. A lot of damage has been done to the environment in the name of development during the last decade. There is hardly any tree left in the city. If the government continues with its projects then even the existing trees will perish. There is nothing left to protest.”

Environmentalists are vehemently opposing the Metro project as they know that more trees will fell. Besides, a portion of Lalbagh — the world’s famous garden of the city — will also be destroyed. But the authorities are least bothered about it. They have gone ahead with their projects. Currently, several trees were felled on the Mysore road for widening it. The BBMP is trying to revive the greenery by planting saplings. “We have already planted some eight lakh saplings in the last three years,” says Shanthakumar, a forest conservator, who works with the BBMP. But, environmentalists are not convinced. They aren’t sure whether these actions will get the required results.

“Who will donate four-square feet land for greenery when a square feet is worth Rs 5,000? People need to understand the value of having trees around. They should plant new ones in their areas. Felling of trees has an impact on the environment also. It has led to warm weather and heat waves in the city. Air circulation has also reduced due to the dense residential development and loss of tree cover,” says Yellappa Reddy.

For Complete I I P M Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Read these article :-

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!

Outlook Magazine money editor quits
Don't trust the Indian Media!

Marriage trap

2010-06-14T13:54:00.000+05:30

In a cluster of villages in rural Bangalore, child marriages are robbing young girls of the right to college education. B S Narayanaswamy and N K Suprabha investigate

Young Kavya’s life would have been very different had she not stood her ground when it really mattered. A year back, when she was only 15, her parents, upper caste and middle class, asked her to brace herself up for a 'bride show' in her school. Kavya refused. All hell broke loose at home. But the girl did not budge. However, her classmate in Uyyamballi high school, Deepu, like many others, could not resist family pressure.

Today, Deepu is married to a boy of her own caste while Kavya goes to college to pursue higher studies. She is determined to make her mark in life and the Pre-University College in Dodda Alahalli village of Kanakapura taluk, 60 km from Bangalore, is helping her prepare for a higher purpose.

“That was the most horrible moment of my life,” says Kavya, recalling the day she had to take on her parents. “It is common for girls here to be married off before they can enter college. Deepu got married when she was a 10th standard student. But I was very clear about my future.”

Unfortunately, in this part of Karnataka, the likes of Deepu constitute an overwhelming majority and gutsy girls like Kavya are a rarity. In the last five years, over 1,000 arranged child marriages have taken place in Kanakapura. School premises are openly used as a setting by prospective bridegrooms to check out their future brides.

“Most of the girls get engaged in 10th standard and they get married as soon as they finish their exams. Every year we receive plenty of such wedding invitations from our students,” says Jyothi, headmistress of Dodda Alahalli high school.

Girls get pushed into matrimony before they are ready to make up their own minds. Parents use every emotional ruse in the book to have their way. They evoke the issue of family honour to browbeat young girls into submission. They are actually desperate to prevent inter-caste marriages, the possibility of which increases once a girl gets into college and mixes with students of the opposite sex with relative freedom.

In high schools, girls are often pulled out of a classroom when a bridegroom comes calling. Says Anil Gummanahalli, physical training teacher at Uyyamballi high school: “Sometimes a groom visits a girl’s house without a prior appointment. So the girl’s parents come to the school along with the groom. I myself have sent many girl students from an ongoing class for this kind of vadhu pariksha. It's quite commonplace.”

Elagahalli high school headmaster Shivarudrappa also confirms that many such vadhu parikshas have occurred in nearby schools in recent times. While these bride shows happen under the very nose of the law, the law-keepers are either blissfully unaware about the social menace or are simply inacapable of taking action against the wrongdoers under the law.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

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FIENDS ON THE PROWL

2010-06-09T11:34:00.000+05:30

A TSI sting operation finds how paedophilia has turned into a thriving business in Delhi, NCR and Mumbai. Taking advantage of kids’ poverty and craze for brands and gadgets, middlemen get rich by supplying minor boys and girls to satiate the desire of sick, rich men, many of them NRIs and foreigners. By Abhishek Kumar and Neeraj Rajput

Dutch national Will Heum’s arrest in Chennai for having sex with minors and uploading pornographic pictures on the Internet came as an isolated shock to the nation. But a TSI investigation finds out that paedophilia is rampant in India’s cities. The number of sick and rich individuals who want to have sex with minors is large enough to sustain a thriving business involving middlemen and child sex workers. So if any of you thought paedophilia was a western malaise that would not affect India, you could not be more mistaken.

Children are the easiest to be taken advantage of. Poverty as well as their desire to own the latest gadget make them vulnerable to overtures of middlemen. Most kids, whom the TSI team met, had told their parents that they were going for study or dance lessons. To explore more, the TSI special investigative team visited Faridabad, Noida, Delhi, Mumbai and Goa many times. What was astounding was that despite being minors, these kids spoke and reasoned like adults, obviously trained by the pimps who brought them along. Another startling fact is that not only kids from poor and needy families are being trapped in this racket. Kids from rich or well-to-do families are also lured into the trap.

We got lead about Ansh, a pimp in Noida. One of us posed as an Australian NRI on the phone and he agreed to meet us. The next day, we met Ansh at a coffee outlet in Noida Sector 18 market. We reached much before time, eager to find out who all accompanied him. There were two more people, one of them a girl. When we met him, a kid sitting next to him greeted us. He said he was 14 years old, but looked younger. The smartly dressed kid looked like from a well-to-do family. We were right. The kid said his father was a big officer in Indian Railways. He was so confident that we felt we were not talking to a child but a professional in this field for years.

TSI- What is your name?
BOY-……….
TSI-What work do you do?
Boy-I am a student.
TSI - Where do you study?
Boy-I am in the XIIth standard
TSI-Where are you studying?
Boy-………………………., Daryaganj
TSI-What is your age?
Boy-14 yrs
TSI- But you don’t appear 14. You seem to belong to a rich family.
TSI-In case you are wondering where I got your number from, I saw an advertisement in the newspaper and picked it up from there.
Ansh-Yes. We have advertised many times in newspapers.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

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Old warhorse rides back

2010-06-08T14:28:00.000+05:30

Uma Bharti, the OBC face of the Ram Mandir movement, may be re-inducted into the BJP and is likely to lead the party in Uttar Pradesh, Priyanka Rai reports

Dogged by its own problems, confronted with one internal crisis after another, the 30-year-old BJP is struggling to find direction. It has failed to come up with an effective plan which would give the party a firm footing in the electorally significant state of Uttar Pradesh.

According to party insiders, BJP is not only all set to re-induct senior estranged leader Uma Bharti but also give her the charge of UP to galvanise BJP’s rank and file. The BJP leadership feels she is the rare politician who successfully combined mandir with mandal and is the best weapon to counter Mayawati in a state where caste is the king. The idea to launch Uma Bharti as the face of BJP in UP reportedly came from RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat who believes she can strengthen the party in Uttar Pradesh. Senior RSS leaders believe that she fits the bill of a “charismatic leader” the party so badly needs to take the SP and the BSP head on.

Moreover, being a firebrand woman leader, Uma is also seen fit to be pitted against BSP supreme and state chief minister Mayawati who is also known for her aggressive style of politics. “She is not new to UP. The party needs a dynamic face that is distant from local factionalism and at the same time understands the internal dynamics of the state,” says a senior BJP leader. Uma Bharti had once been a credible OBC face of the party. Since she belongs to the Lodh community, many leaders believe she would compensate for the loss of Kalyan Singh, another leader from the same community. With her entry, the BJP leadership feels, the operation to transplant backward caste vote bank on a Baniya-Brahmin system can materialise.

Uma was also at the forefront of the Ram Mandir movement and was a star campaigner of BJP during the movement, which had played an important role in the party’s expansion across the country.

But, in the quintessential BJP style, the party is divided over this issue. Party sources say BJP president Nitin Gadkari and Mohan Bhagwat want to welcome Uma back in the BJP ranks, whereas senior leaders like Sushma Swaraj, Arun Jaitley, Venkaiah Naidu and Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan are not too happy about this move. Apart from these senior leaders, many other BJP central leaders are also opposed to it as she has a history of bitter clashes with some of them. Former Deputy Prime Minister and BJP stalwart L.K. Advani has reportedly given the green signal to Uma Bharti’s re-entry in the party. Sources close to him confirm the news but don’t see it happening too soon.

Uma Bharti was expelled from the BJP in 2005 after she had attacked senior leaders, including then president Advani. She stormed out of a party meeting after insulting the leader. Uma had shouted about “rootless Rajya Sabha members who plant stories” in television channels and newspapers and had challenged Advani to take disciplinary action against her. That left the BJP leadership with no choice but to suspend her from the primary membership of the party. She then formed her own party called Bhartiya Janshakti Party. Uma Bharti recently resigned from the post of president of her own party. This move is seen as the first step to mend fences with the BJP.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

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Bad Mash Company

2010-06-07T12:44:00.000+05:30

A crumpled mess of implausible storytelling glazed with over the top stylisation

If making a good movie is like crafting a statue out of stone, “Badmash Company” takes the Lego blocks assembly shortcut mashing together a few borrowed cons (some may faintly remind you of “Matchstick Men”, a Nicholas Cage starrer released in 2003) to churn out a wasteful effort. In fact, you suspect if any effort was involved at all in scheming up the story of four friends who try to make some fast money via dodgy means. Everything is a fair game – from sneakers to gloves to even the mortgage market – for our con artists extraordinaire led by Karan (Shahid Kapoor), who start with simple sneaker smuggling in a pre-liberalised India and then set their sights on pulling off cons in the Big Apple. How four ordinary Indians with seemingly little in terms of connections can pull such far fetched and ambitious heists is beyond comprehension.

Implausibility aside, the film appears too stylised (Yash Raj Films love their costumes and their locations grand and slick but you’d be surprised to see how glam pre-liberalisation India looked!) for you to be interested in the characters, who by the way are lazily etched anyway. The story is pretty predictable and the fact that our ‘Friends & Co.’ (that’s what the four dub themselves) touch everything from the mortgage market to the stock market besides getting Michael Jackson to start a fashion trend will make you want to yank your hair out. The acting is conspicuous by its absence; Meiyang Chang and Vir Das have too little screen time to really matter and Anushka Sharma is just about there. Shahid Kapoor tries to be all he is not and fails miserably. The film is a poor mash up of borrowed content and artificial intent.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

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Rift turns polls colourful

2010-06-04T12:29:00.000+05:30

Soumya Bandopadhyay says the civic polls will decide the course of the 2011 Assembly polls in West Bengal

Thank God! The alliance is no more! Otherwise the election to 81 civic bodies including Kolkata and Salt Lake would have turned colourless. There is a general ‘Feel Good’ wind doing the Left Front’s corridors. But whether a division of opposition votes really translate in the Left Front’s victory is a million dollar question. It will also answer whether this division is the only factor which has enabled the Left to be in power for nearly 33 years. Perhaps, it’s an opportunity for Mamata Banerjee and her party to negate this myth. This is the biggest attraction of these civic polls.

For Alimuddin Street satraps, who have forgotten class struggle and have turned arrogant, flamboyant and patronising towards party cadres, combating the stormy political weather of change, which started since the Singur-Nandigram days, was impossible. The Trinamool onslaught in south Bengal left the Left at its defensive best in the last three and a-half decades. The ever-growing blind and unquestionable mass support to Mamata had another truth to it. The masses were mainly demanding the ‘end of CPM rule’.

As people of different colours and creed have joined that stream, the Congress leadership too, acknowledging people’s wishes, got their state leadership to join that force. Whenever elections were held in the post-Singur-Nandigram period, the state Congress leadership had to obey the dictum of its high command — be it Panchayat election or by-polls to Bishnupur (West), Bowbazar or Sealdah or the Lok Sabha election. But, now the flute is playing a different tune. And the Trinamool, Pradesh Congress and the Congress high command, all have been conductors in this grand orchestra.

The question is, despite honouring all the demands of Mamata Banerjee till date, why did Congress president Sonia Gandhi did not force the state leadership to listen to the Trinamool supremo?

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

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Greece’s problem is only temporary and its capital will flow again

2010-06-02T12:05:00.000+05:30

Like in Poland, Hungary too in early 1990s faced rapid institutional change and severe economic downturn — when a reform package known as “legislative shock therapy” was announced. The main points of this package were debt restructuring and vigorous privatisation, especially for the public sector and the banking system. These changes were successfully implemented to create one of the strongest financial sectors in the region with a well governed market.

Therefore, it can be deciphered that investors have short memories — Greece will get over its current crisis and capital will start flowing again — as it happened in Russia, Poland and Hungary. Also it is a fact that ex-communist countries could only dream of the kind of support Greece is getting from its European partners. Under the plan, Euro zone nations (comprising of 16 states) would provide $570 billion, while the rest $75 billion is offered by the European Union Commission. IMF will also provide a backing of $325 billion, half of what euro zone leaders have granted.

It is an opportunity for the West European nations to get their acts together. One sometimes wonder, had the problem be with Ukraine or any other similar nation— who is also seeking EU membership, just like Greece — would it receive same kind of attention as its neighbour! It’s anybody’s speculation.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

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IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!

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India can’t manufacture SIM cards as per requirements

2010-06-01T15:12:00.000+05:30

It is not that the Indian Parliament is oblivious of the fact. Even parliamentarians are worried about this grave danger. BJP MP and member of the parliamentary committee on IT and communications Rajendra Aggarwal asks for a ban on SIM cards coming from China. He also seeks an audit check of the SIM cards which have already reached the country. He says, “The government should take immediate steps in this regard. The SIM cards which have come from China should be put to security audit. I am not against trade with China but the trade which puts our security in danger should be stopped.” The same apprehension is expressed by Prabhat Jha, MP and also a member of the same committee. He says, “Import of SIM cards from China is inviting danger.”

If the Chinese hackers hack the secure unique authentication key of the Indian SIM cards which are in china and pass it on to terrorists planning to spread violence in India, it can lead to a disaster. In countries like US, instances have been found where terrorists have cloned SIM cards and used them to not only talk to their handlers but also to trigger bomb blasts. The terrorists which attacked Indian Parliament also used a cloned phone. Now, when the government is strict about the verification of identity before issuing mobile connections, the possibility of using cloned phone increases. If the secure unique authentication key of a SIM is known, then any mobile number of the Indian network can be put on the Pakistani mobile network. A defence officer says, “We found a mobile with a terrorist and were stunned to find that the SIM of Indian network was working on Pakistan mobile network. It becomes very difficult for Intelligence agencies to trace such mobile numbers.”

Even then, DoT keeps its eyes closed. The way in which interests of Chinese companies are being safeguarded hints at a big scandal. TSI has in its possession the report of the committee under the chairmanship of the member technical of the DoT which was submitted on April 1, 2010. The committee was set up by the department of telecommunication to give security clearance to equipment and software bought by the cellular companies. This report has a few parameters for obtaining security clearance and the list of 15 equipment and software for which cellular operators will require the government’s permission. But the circular issued on December 3, 2009, asked the operators to take security clearance from the department if they bought any software or equipment. According to this circular, even SIM cards require security clearance. The sources informed TSI that while the list of the equipment and software which needed security clearance was being finalised, it had even SIM cards on it. But it was removed at the last moment. Why was this done? Was it the carelessness of the department or a planned omission? It will get clear only after an inquiry.

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Read these article :-

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!

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The bankrupt Punjab State Electricity Board is bifurcated

2010-05-03T11:26:00.000+05:30

PSEB had a staggering debt of Rs. 16000 crore with fiscal deficit at Rs. 9000 crore. The market value of the total assets of PSEB is about Rs. 30,000 crore. The new companies would start from zero balance and would not inherit the legacy of the financial mess.

The engineers' associations have finally welcomed the move as the government has allayed the apprehensions of the stakeholders like the employees and the farmers. The government has convinced them that it was mainly the management system which had undergone a change and these sections would not be affected in any manner. The service conditions of the employees would remain the same. The farmers would continue to enjoy the facility of free power for the farm sector. Dalit households would also get the same facility of free power as earlier. The government took pains to make the situation transparent saying it was not privatisation but only corporatisation.

However, Dr. Joginder Dayal, member of the CPI national executive would not share this perception of the state government saying, “It is just the first step towards privatisation. Moreover, the states where the power boards have already been dissolved have not benefited in any manner and the consumers have to cough up more than before”. West Bengal has already implemented the Electricity Act, 2003 where the CPI is a partner in the government. Of course, power tariff is much higher in neighbouring Haryana where the power board was trifurcated much earlier. However, there are some states in India where unbundling of the power supply board has been a spectacular success.

As per the policy announced by the state government, the chiefs of the two companies, along with the directors, would be appointed through an open process. The criteria for the selection are being given final touches. The Chief Secretary heads the committee for this purpose. Of course, the final decision would be taken by the political leadership. Powercom would have a total of eight directors, one each for generation, distribution, commercial, finance, human resources development and general administration, besides two nominees from the state government. The other company, Transco, would have four directors.

IAS officer Anurag Aggarwal, who heads the two power companies as part of an interim arrangement, says: “The new teams would comprise professionals and experts from the technical cadre. The teams would have the required capability and clear mandate to take the performance of the power sector to the higher level of efficiency."

Punjab was the first state to achieve total rural electrification. However, of late, the quality of power has been very poor. Though the farm sector is being provided free power for more than a decade, the supply has been erratic. Even urban areas are subjected to long power cuts and the situation is worse during the peak load demand as generation has been stagnant for about a decade. Now it is to be seen as to how much functional autonomy the two new companies enjoy. The state government would have to ensure timely payment of subsidy on account of free power supply to different sections of society for the success of power reforms, apart from taking other required measures. Mere restructuring in itself is unlikely to achieve the pupose.

The industry has welcomed this initiative of the Badal government. Regional chairman of Engineering Export Promotion Council SC Ralhan says: “The move would definitely be a great benefit to the industry. However, the situation would become clear in the coming months. Of course, it has opened up the power sector in the state as mandated by the Electricity Act. It is the work culture which also needs to be changed by introducing better accountability at every level.”

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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Read these article :-

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!

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A little big girl

2010-04-28T13:42:00.000+05:30

A Lucknow schoolgirl invokes RTI to rid the street outside her school of a garbage dump, reports Puja Awasthi

Aishwarya Sharma, who turned nine this month, created history of sorts by becoming the youngest person to file a Right to Information (RTI) application and see it through to get results. Sharma’s application, filed on November 30, 2009, wanted to know why an overflowing garbage disposal site, where pigs and dogs roamed freely, should exist right across her school and be a possible source of infection to her and the other children.

Sharma’s mother Urvashi has been an RTI activist for long and has recently set up an RTI helpline, yet it was only recently that Aishwarya began to pay attention to what her mother was doing. “The swine flu scare was all over. But no one, not even parents, was willing to pay any attention to that possible source of infection that stood right across our school,” says the girl who has just been promoted to Class Four.

Coached well by her mother, Aishwarya prattles that the RTI is what “allows you to rectify anything that is wrong. It is a tool to weed out corruption,” faltering when asked what precisely does Section 6 of the Act that she so often quotes say.

The RTI route was not the first that Aishwarya took. She initially wrote to chief minister Mayawati’s office in October 2009 asking for the garbage dump to be removed. When no answers came, she took the RTI way, dipping into her own piggy bank to pay the Rs 10 that is to be attached to every RTI query. In her baby handwriting, guided by her mother, she had three pointed queries for the chief minister’s Public Information Officer: one, was there any rule which permitted the building of a garbage disposal site near a school; two, if the garbage were to become a source of infection for the children in her school, who would be held responsible; and lastly that she be given a photocopy of the file into which the first letter she had sent to the CM had gone.

In February this year, she received a response from the city’s civic authorities (Lucknow Nagar Nigam), informing her that the city’s Health Officer and the Mayor had directed that the site should no longer be used for disposal of garbage and that a fresh site be built elsewhere. “But they did not answer any of my questions,” she points out. In less than a month, the girl was at it again: writing a fresh application to the Appeals Officer at the Nagar Nigam asking why her queries had not been responded to precisely and why had she not received copies of the orders of the two authorities mentioned in the reply.

For Complete I I P M Article, Click on IIPM Article

Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009

An IIPM and Professor Arindam Chaudhuri (Renowned Management Guru and Economist) Initiative

Read these article :-

IIPM: An intriguing story of growth and envy

THE NEED OF A RIGHT TO FOOD BILL - Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri of IIPM

The Sunday Indian:- B-SCHOOL RANKING SCAMSTERS EXPOSED!

Outlook Magazine money editor quits
Don't trust the Indian Media!